Snake
sheds his skin and comes out on top. This director's
cut is a must play for any self-respecting MGS fanatic,
even if you've played MGS3 to death. by
Darwin C.

March
20, 2006 - Some
gamers don't need any excuse to replay great games
such as Metal Gear Solid 3. But here's an offer that
you can't refuse. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence
is a re-issue of sorts that features an updated single-player
mode with some new features but most importantly,
an all new online experience with five different multi-modes.
All of this at a discount price. How can you just
sit there? Get off your arse and get this game now.

All
of the core gameplay of the single-player mode has
been preserved. So why should play it again? Because
new things have been added to make the experience
even better than it was the first time around. For
instance, one of the biggest additions is the new,
controllable camera. You're not restricted to a top-down
view. By pushing on the analog stick you can bring
the camera down to an eye-level, third-person perspective
and move it around from there. It not only brings
you face-to-face with Snake, but it brings you in
closer to the action. It's also nice to be able to
switch back to the isometric view to give you a better
view of your surroundings and see where enemies may
be hiding.

MGS
3 chronicles the origin of the MGS series. It's here
we see Big Boss discuss the overview of the missions
with an eager and younger Snake who is a highly-trained
special operative of the military sent out to Russia
to investigate an organization involved in manufacturing
dangerous nuclear weapons. Snake acts a little different
than he does in earlier games but you can tell that
he's learning and growing.

There
are tons of cutscenes - literally hours of them. These
are important to establish not only the storyline
but to immerse you in the world of MGS which is uniquely
intense and alternately peculiar with its sense of
humor. The characters are very well developed and
while there may be the odd hackneyed dialog exchange,
watching these numerous scenes is extremely entertaining,
not to mention that you are listening for clues and
any other information that will help you with upcoming
missions. All of these cutscenes have been combined
on one separate disk and presented as a Metal Gear
Solid 3 movie. It's available on the Limited Edition
version of the game which is ten bucks more than the
standard game which is value priced at thirty bucks.
If you don't decide it's worth it, since all of the
cutscenes are still included in the standard version
anyway, you can look forward to being entertained
by the hilarious parodies of the serious cutscenes
in the Secret Theater mode which you will be able
to unlock. These re-mixed scenes poke fun at the serious
tone of the storyline but instead of appearing like
a separate comedy entity like MAD TV doing a lampoon,
it all seems like an organic outgrowth of the MGS
universe.

The
missions include stealth, shooting and puzzle-solving,
all of which is extremely well embedded into the gameplay
with the right amount of depth. In other words, there
are no tile sliding puzzles. Nothing in this game
feels tacked on. There is such good variety in the
mission, weapons, moves and gadgets that you'll never
be in danger of getting bored. And that's just the
single-player mode.

The
online modes take MGS in a new direction. It goes
beyond the standard frag fests by incorporating many
of the moves, weapons and gadgets from the single-player
mode. It even includes the manual camera in third-person
perspective. You can hide in cardboard boxes or with
the aid of camouflage outfits, hide in the bush or
grass and try to pick off enemies with your sniper
rifle.

There
are five modes online which allow you to play as any
of three organizations. To once again illustrate the
game's sense of humor you will have to "capture
the frog" in the Capture mode in which each team
attempts to keep the frog in their possession the
longest. In the Rescue mode, one team defends a rubber
ducky while the other team tries to snatch it from
them.

Up
to eight players can be accommodated online. It's
easy to register online and the lobby offers features
such as a buddy list for those you want to play with
again and a blacklist for those that you don't. Getting
into quick-play games is a snap and there are different
levels for players of varying skills, so beginners
will be very well taken care of. The games run smooth
with no lag and displays the same quality graphics
and animations that made the 2004 version an instant
classic.

Subsistence
is a high-quality game all the way. The only reason
that the overall score is lower than you might expect
is because the single-player mode is just upgraded
and not a completely new game.

Features:

Duel
Mode - Battle boss enemies in succession from MGS3.

Demo
Theater Mode - Watch All In-Game Movies from MGS3
similar to a theatrical movie.

Includes
the Original MSX games Metal Gear and Metal Gear
2 Solid Snake.

New
Levels of the Mini Game Snake vs. Monkey.

Game
connectivity to MGA 2 for the PSP- players can export
photographs taken in Subsistence into MGA2 and then
view them in 3D

MGS3
Snake Eater camera system is refined to a free roaming
3rd person view; players can control the camera
according to their preference

Additional
Face Paint for more Camouflage Variety

New
Multiplayer Online Modes:

Sneaking
Mission One player will take the part of Snake in
this on-line mode. Snake will be the victor if that
player manages to procure something that is guarded
by the other players. Even if the enemy soldiers
are killed, they can re-spawn if they have a life
ticket. 1 player vs. 7 players online.

Team
Death Match Players are divided into teams to play
a VS. game in a set time limit. The team with the
most remaining life tickets will be declared the
winner.

Death
Match Battle royal type of match where it is a free-for-all.
The rules can be set-up such that there is a time
limit with the winner being the ones with the most
kills or the player with the most life tickets remaining.

Capture
Mission Players are divided into teams to capture
a frog piggy bank and deliver it back to their base.
Players will be able to re-spawn as long as there
are life tickets remaining.

Cargo
Rescue Teams will be divided into 2 with one side
being the defender of 'cargo piggy bank' while the
other team will try to destroy it. The defenders
will try to deliver the cargo to a certain location.
The rules differ here in that the players that are
killed cannot re-spawn and will turn into ghosts.

ByDarwin
C. CCC
Freelance Writer

Rating
out of 5

Metal
Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (PS2)

4.5

GraphicsExcellent
high resolution graphics, even when the
areas are dark. The new camera angles affords
us an unprecedented look at the all of the
environments.

5.0

ControlIncredibly
responsive commands from the control system.
Lot of weapons, moves and gadgets to explore
and exploit.

4.5

Music
/ Sound FX / Voice ActingThe
voiceacting is good and the cutscenes are
so well produced they are available in the
Limited Edition package as a three-and-a-half
hour movie.

5.0

Play
ValueIt's
the online mode that rocks this game. It
bring the MGS series to a whole other level.

4.4

Overall
Rating -
Great
Not an average. See Rating legend above
for a final score breakdown.

Preview
by Vaughn

With
the advent of director's cuts playing a big part in
extra DVD sales above and beyond the original releases
distributed for home entertainment purposes, it's
no surprise that the videogame industry wants a piece
of that lucrative pie too.

Heck,
it's not even a new idea for the gaming industry.
Anyone remember the Resident Evil Director's Cut debacle
a few years back on the PSone? It was supposed to
feature a violent intro scene that was originally
cut from the first game. The only problem was, someone
at Capcom forgot to include it in the Director's Cut.
Man oh man I can't even begin to imagine the amount
of fingerpointing and scapegoating that mistake would
have unleashed.

"I
thought that was Yahiro's job!"

"Liar!
This is all your fault because of your fondness for
large American sandwiches and lazy work ethic!"

Yes,
I translated the original text from Japanese to English
because that' s just the kind of dude I am.

Anyway,
that sure was a long way to stretch an intro to Metal
Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, which is developer Hideo
Kojima's "director's cut" of Snake Eater
which appeared on PS2 systems last Fall. Of course
we know that Hideo Kojima likes to milk his creations
for all their worth and let's face it, he has every
right too. The games he helms tend to be pretty important
to the industry and like all perfectionists, he is
never happy with the finished product. Like most sensitive
artistes I'm sure he relishes being given the opportunity
to go back and add levels, mechanics, cinemas or other
minute details that were cut due to the original deadline.

Lot's
of extras are planned for Subsistence, not the least
of which is actual online play where you can battle
other Snake's online or have one Snake versus a gaggle
of enemies (all played by human gamers). We were also
told that cooperative play will be available but have
yet to find out if it's net based or split screen.
MGS3 fans can also look forward to new camo, weapons
and items as well as the ability to manipulate the
camera during cutscenes. Check out the pic of Eva
crawling around....we're sure this is the only reason
to include this newfound camera ability.

Perhaps
the biggest and most exciting alteration to the original
game is the behind the shoulder third person perspective
which divided Metal Gear fans into two camps. Those
who tolerated it and those who hated it. If you were
the one dude or dudine (which is the actual correct
term for a female dude...you learn something everyday!)
who liked the aerial view of Snake Eater, you can
rest easy because Kojima will be offering that as
well.

Last
but not least is the inclusion of the first two Metal
Gear games originally released on the Japanese MSX
system and which recently appeared as cellphone games
in Japan. The second game, Solid Snake never saw the
light of day in North America. Instead we were treated
to a complete abomination developed solely for the
North American market which ripped the heart and soul
out the Metal Gear series and replaced it with pathetic
side scrolling action and boss battles with dudes
named Higharolla Kockamamie....yeah,
you read that correctly. Snake's Revenge on the NES
is considered way out there and is generally not included
in the history of Metal Gear games.

Kojima's
newly christened Kojima Productions (Houston I think
we have an ego problem....) is heading up development
of Subsistence and will ship for the PS2 later this
year. Unfortunately the news isn't good for Xbox owners
as Kojima's team doesn't plan to port this to their
favorite system. It's PS2 all the way. Boo Hiss!

My
final thought on Subsistence is one of wonder - as
in, I wonder why anybody would buy these Metal Gear
Solid games the moment they arrive on storeshelves
if they know a better version will be along shortly
after which addresses all of the problems inherent
in the original? I'm wise to this whole thing now.
I didn't buy MGS3; I'll spend my money on the "upgraded"
version. How did I know that there would be an upgraded
version, you might ask? Just smart I guess.